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Our NewsletterIssue No. 49: Should Politically Appointed State Boards Determine Drug Prices?
Maryland last month became the first state to establish a board to set maximum prices for drugs purchased by state and local governments; shortly thereafter, Maine became the second. According to a survey by the National Academy for State Health Policy(NASHP), attempts to establish price-review boards in two states (Illinois and Connecticut) failed, but in five others (Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, Oregon, and Missouri) legislation has been referred to relevant committees. The structure of the review boards is similar in all these states, so let’s take a close look at one of them. Legislation passed the Maryland House of Delegates, 96-37, and the Senate, 38-8. Maryland’s governor, Larry Hogan, a Republican, declined either to veto or to sign the bill, so after a prescribed waiting period, it became law. Maryland, like five of the other seven states where review boards have been up for consideration, is staunchly Democratic. Only one of its eight members of the U.S. House is Republican, and Hillary Clinton beat Donald Trump in 2016 by 60% to 34%. Still, a state price control board is significant for any state. As Health Care for All, an advocacy group, put it, “The Prescription Drug Affordability Board will be the first government entity in the United States created to lower the cost of drugs.” READ MORE HERE. |
What Others Are Saying"The anger directed at the pharmaceutical and biotech industries overall is misdirected. The single biggest driving force for increased health-care spending in the U.S. is the rising cost of labor, not drugs." "Even if pharmaceutical spending were rising as a share of total health care spending, but that rise was due to pharmaceutical investments driving down expenditures in other health care areas (e.g. a reduced need for more expensive surgeries), then it would still be inaccurate to argue that pharmaceutical spending is driving overall health care inflation." |